martin8708

I'm probably still rubbish now after nearly 30 years of playing, but I have got into more bands by being Enthusiastic and dependable and by providing a simple bass line to a song , the trick is to forget about how " you " sound , but how you make the whole band sound . I have seen many a speed -god or fretless wonder get the boot from a band because they are stealing the lime light from the singer / guitarist ,and that will never do!! My practice is to switch the radio on and just try to play along to each song , it sounds awful at first, but it will slowly get better as your ear develops and starts to recognise chords and different styles of music . Try and get into a band, you learn alot quicker with a good drummer and generally guitarists are happy to help with chords , etc . Most of all , have fun .

Perhaps I should not have used the word '' dissappointment '' in my description , I think ''different '' is a better word to use . As a long time Markbass user , my ears are used to the LM3 and LM250 sound , so I was probably expecting the same ( but bigger ) in the 800. I have also learnt the long, slow + expensive way that amps and cabs that sound fantastic on there own ,ie LM3, sometimes sound quite different in a loud band situation . New amps also take some time to get used to, and finding your ''sound '' in an amp will only come after a number of gigs . The Tube 800 is definately my amp of choice in a big band setting , it really does seem to find that space between guitars and drums so that you have an audible / defined bass sound even if the guitarists are doing their best to wipe you out . If I had to sell one of the amps ( I think I may have to ,anyway ) , I would probably keep the 800 and sell the LM3 .

Hi , I have both LittleMark 3 and a Tube 800 amp . I bought the Tube 800 to give me an edge over the two rather loud guitarists that I played with . I tend to have all the Eq flat with a small amount of VLE to try and give a bit of '' vintageness '' to my sound . The tube effect is not hugely apparent , many people argue that they cannot hear it at all , but I think I can pick it up when I start to dig in and play fairly hard . The Little Mark 3 has a very warm / deep sound which is great when played on its own , I also use the LM3 for duo work with an acoustic guitarist as it seems to fill out the sound and give a really good foundation in this type of music . The Tube 800 was a bit of a dissappointment when I first got it , played on its own it does not have the fullness of the LM3 , but I took it to some gigs with a loud Pub Rock band and the Low/mids really seem to punch through the mix of two over zealous guitarists . I also have plenty of power in reserve ( which I probably wont need ) , but its there if needed . I am no sound engineer , so forgive my amatuerish description , but there are other factors like type of bass/ Cab /pedals etc that you may use . Hope this helps

In reading this thread , 1, you've never gigged with this guy 2,you've never rehearsed with this guy 3, you haven't even auditioned this guy , what's there to turn down ? This guitarist could be a musical genius , why not give him the benefit of the doubt and try him out , Facebook is hardly the best way to get to know the real person.

Are they really that loud ? I'm still undecided between the Super 12 and Super 15 , the Super 15 may be cracking walnuts with sledgehammers , but I just think you cannot beat a good old 15'' cab for the classic P-Bass sound .

Mark bought my LittleMark 250 bass amp , prompt payment and smooth transaction with lots of humourous PM's . Many thanks and hope you enjoy the amp . Martin.

The fact that this is a charity gig , may make your refusal to share your rig '' uncharitable '' in the eyes of others , but equally , if Mr Slap Happy blows up your rig , will he/she pay for the repairs . I have been caught out in this situation before , handing over my pride + joy with a promise to look after it , only to watch some cretin doing his best Curt Cobain impression with my equipment . You are donating your time + musical skill +equipment . Let the other band do the same .

Smallest was barstaff plus Lead Guitarist's Mum + Dad ( a bit odd as he is in his 30's and his parents come to each gig? ) Biggest 500 plus at the Royal Mail Christmas party held in the sorting office in Peterborough , apparently Status Quo and Level 42 have done gigs at the same sorting office , or so we were told .

Here on the Isle of Wight , our local music shops are great and have a really eclectic mix of guitars . We can sustain five shops , but as they are all different , and can source some really cool instruments ( how about a 64 Danelectro shorthorn a'la Jimmy Page .) I bought my 64 Precision from Strings in Ryde , and Volume One has a really cool Selmer Treble and Bass and matching Goliath Cab in Croc skin in fabulous condition , there really are some vintage gems to be had . All our shops are owner operated , so lots of knowledge and help on tap. I would rather buy locally,or off the net , than venture down Tin Pan alley.

I go up to London 2-3 times a year and each time I go to Denmark Street ,the quality of the instruments and the customer service seem to slide down yet another notch. Andys at the end of Denmark street now sells old eastern european and Hagstrom type guitars which possibly only Jack White would like , I can remember when the instruments were great 10 or so years ago,and you would put up will the poor treatment from the shop staff as part of the "Denmark Street " experience . Now the guitars are appalling , there is no reason to go there. I agree that there is huge potential to revive the street, probably just need to get rid of Music Ground ,or wait for them to go bust ,so that the shops can go back to individual ownership.

Hi Clarky I am quoting from the Vintage Guitar Guide by Alan Greenwood and Gil Hembree ''An original instrument must have the original finish . A refinished guitar is generally worth about 50% or less of the value shown in the guide .A repaired guitar , technically ,is not all original . Repairs can make a guitar generally worth 5% to 50% less than values shown in the guide . A professional re-fret or very minor nearly invisible body repair will reduce a guitars value by only 5% . As a fellow 63 P-Bass owner , the pleasure of owning these instruments is playing something unique and if the neck needs a refret to bring it to its full potential , it will only enhance the instrument . As it is a refin , it will never be a '' museum -grade '' instrument , so relax , get the refret ( with period correct frets ) and enjoy . PS , spent 2 weeks in Tuscany , now its a toss up between Corfu and Italy for that bolt-hole .

[quote name='KiOgon' post='1322391' date='Jul 31 2011, 07:24 PM']So if you turned up for 'your average pub gig' with a Custom shop Pino Palladino or similar, let's say £2.5+ks worth - how many people would notice?[/quote] I normally gig a 57 Vintage Re-issue Precision , have done for the past 10 years . Recently bought Jasons CS Pino Precision ( though I would treat myself to a bit of class ) and the first gig I did with it , I was told the bass sounded '' farty '' and some-one offered to nip home to get their Arai bass for me to play in the second set . Amp is LittleMark 3 with two New York 604 cabs which sounds fantastic . Now I just say the Pino is a cheap Squier bass and changed the strings to round wounds . I used to have a 5 string for gigs too , but got rid of that as everybody wants you to do 5 minute solo's as they assume you are some bass god with the extra string .